Disability Confident Scheme

LGA

Amanda Wadsworth MBE Disability Policy Adviser DWP Disability and Work Opportunities Aims

The aims for Disability Confident are to:

- engage and encourage employers to become more confident so they employ and retain disabled people
- increase understanding of disability and the benefits of employing or retaining disabled people
- make a substantial contribution towards getting 1 million more disabled people into work over the next 10 years. Disability Confident - The case for action

Evidence shows that appropriate work is good for our health

- Good work

- Worklessness

- Good health

- Poor health

100 people begin losing their sight every day

The spending power of disabled people and their families is £249bn

73% of employers who made work-related adjustments for employees said it was “very” or “quite easy” to do so

There’s currently a 30.8% employment gap between disabled and non-disabled people

Hearing loss is a major public health issue affecting 10 million people

Less than 10% of disabled people use wheelchairs

83% of people acquire their disability while in work Starting your Disability Confident journey

5 Actions and at least one activity that will make a difference.

Sign-up through Gov.UK www.gov.uk/disability-confident

Badge and certificate for 1 year Employer self-assessment two themes:

- Getting the right people for your business
- Keeping and developing your people.
- Offering at least one activity that will make a difference.

What happens next? When you have completed level 2, you will need to follow this link to Gov.UK to confirm that you:

- have undertaken and successfully completed the Disability Confident self-assessment
- are taking all of the core actions to be a Disability Confident employer
- are offering at least one activity to get the right people for your business and at least one activity to keep and develop your people.

Badge and certificate for 2 years Outside challenge of your self-assessment and demonstration of your Leadership activity.

- Acting as a champion within your local and business community
- Engaging your supply chain and your networks
- Showing disabled people that you are serious about leading the way
- About helping other businesses to become Disability Confident.

Badge and certificate for 3 years To support you on your journey there is a range of online information, guidance and resources available through [www.gov.uk/disability-confident](http://www.gov.uk/disability-confident) Search for Disability Confident. Disability Confident Specialist Thematic Approach

- DWP is constantly looking for ways to improve the Disability Confident scheme and has extended the offer made to employers that have already signed-up, whilst encouraging those that have not, to do so.

- With support from our Disability Confident Leaders, we have introduced a Specialist Thematic approach that offers specific advice, guidance and information on a series of topics that will help employers (signed up to Disability Confident) to recruit and retain disabled people.

- The first specialist theme was piloted in October 2017 and covered ‘Mental Health in the Workplace’, a subject that many employers told us they wanted more information about. This approach was extremely well received by the Disability Confident community with requests for more specialist thematic programmes.

- Further Specialist Themed programmes have since been delivered around the topics of Workplace Adjustments (Channel 4) and all aspects of the Recruitment Process (Recruitment and Employment Confederation). All Disability Confident employers have access to this unique range of information, webinars, videos and blogs to help them better understand this agenda.

- The next Specialist theme will focus on Terminal illness and Long Term Conditions and will take place in October 2018. Thank you!